Automatic feed for punching-machines.



, G. G. LEES.

AUTOMATIC FEED FOR PUNOHING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED PEB.21, 1914.

1 ,1 33 ,649. Patented Mar. 30, 1915.

3 SHEBTQ-SHEET 1.

$4M mam/W4 75% THE NORRIS PETERS CO.. PHOTO-L|THOq VVASHINGTUN, D. C.

G. G. LEES.

AUTOMATIC FEED FOR PUNGHING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.21, 1914.

Patented Mar. 30, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

R Q III QQ IHE NORRIS PETERS C0,. PHOTD-LITHQ. WASHINGTON. D. C.

G. G. LEES.

AUTOMATIC FEED FOR PUNGHING MACHINES.

3 SHEET$SHEET 3.

PO 1 9 1 0 3 v. a M d w 8 t a P. 4 1 9 1 1 2 m E F D E L I v N 0 I T A 0 I L P P A 4 n0 3 3 1 1 W fM THE NORRIS PETERS CO. PHOTO-LITHO., WASHINGTON, D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT neuron,

Q GEORGE G. LEES, OF SHELTON, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE LEES BUTTON 00., OF

LEOMINSTER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION.

AUTOMATIC FEED FOR PUN CHIN G-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 30, 1915.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE C. LEES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Shelton, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Automatic Feeds for Punching-Machines; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the characters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this application, and represent, 1n-

Figure 1 a front view of an automatic feeding device for punching machines constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 a side view of the same. Fig. 3 a top or plan view showing the operating pawl at the beginning of movement to the right. Fig. 4: a similar view showing the position of the parts in the beginning of the movement to the left. Fig. 5 a detached view of the pawl shown locked in its inoperative position. Fig. 6 a sectional view on the line 04-6 of Fig. 1. Fig. 7 a sectional view on the line ccZ of Fig. 1.

This invention relates to an improvement in automatic feeds for punching machines wherein a sheet or strip of stock is successively presented before the punch so that the stock may be punched therefrom in rows, and the holes punched in one row shall be staggered from those in the next row. Such machines are commonly used for punching washers and disks for various purposes.

The particular object of this invention is to provide means for so moving the stock at .the completion of the movement in either direction that the holes in one row will be arranged between the preceding row; or, in other words, the punching will be, as it is called, staggered; and the invention consists in the construction hereinafter described and particularly recited in the claims.

As my improved feeding device is independent of any particular form of punching device, such punching mechanism is not illustrated, it being understood that the device is adapted to be applied to punching machines of usual construction in which the punch is reciprocated back and forth against an anvil or die.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a slide 2 provided with teeth 3 and adapted at its outer end to support a strip 4: of stock which may be of horn, metal, leather or any other material which it is desired to punch, this strip being adapted to hang between the punch and its corresponding anvil or die. This slide 2 is supported in a bracket 5 projecting outward from a collar 6 mounted on the upper end of a vertically movable rod 7 which is free to move up and down in a frame 8 which is adapted to be attached to the punching press.

Parallel with the rod 7 and moving with it, is a vertically arranged rack 9 having teeth 10 adapted to be engaged by a pawl 11 as will hereinafter appear.

Bigidly fixed on the upper end of the rod 7 1s a pawl-carrier 12 carrying a pivotally arranged pawl 13 the ends 14:, 15, of which are respectively adapted to engage with the teeth 3 of the slide 2. This pawl is held in one position or the other by a spring-latch 16 and is adapted to be locked in its inoperative position by a locking-lever 17. This pawl 13 is provided with a trippingfinger 18 through which passes a trippingrod 19 having tripping-blocks 20 and 21 adapted to successively engage with the trippingfinger, this rod being pivotally connected with the slide 2. The pawl-carrier is adapted to be turned with the rod ,7 by a link 22 actuated by a cam 23 driven with the press and connected with an arm 32 keyed on the rod 7 and timed so that just before the punch moves forward, the cam 13 will be swung so as to move the slide 2 one step in one direction or the other.

To actuate the pawl 11 it is connected with an upwardly projecting lever 24: which is actuated by a link 25 connected to the outer end of an arm 26 on the shaft 27 with which it is keyed, and this shaft is provided at its upper end with a lever 28 which is adapted to be turned by stops 29, 30, on a rod 31 also connected with the slide 2. The upper end of the lever 24 forms a handle 33 so that it may be operated manually. A

strip of material to be punched is secured to the slide and so that its lower edge will come in line with the path of movement of the punch, the rack being movable up or down to permit such adjustment. l'Vhen adjusted, it will be held by one end of the pawl 11 engaging with one of the teeth 10. If, now, the machine be set in operation, the cam 23 moving the link 22 will move the double-ended pawl 13. It is to be noted here that one end of this pawl is longer than the other.

As shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings the end 14: of the pawl is engaged with the teeth 3 and so as to move the work-holder from right to left, and this movement will continue until the stop 21 engages with the tripping-finger 18 which will lift the end 14 out of engagement with the rack and trip the end 15 as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings.- At the same time the stop 30 has turned the lever 28 so as to move one end of the pawl 11 out of engagement with one of the teeth 10 and turn the other end of the pawl into the path of the said teeth 10 so that the rack 9 drops down one tooth and allowing the slide 2 with the pawl and other mechanism to also drop. In this tripping it will be noted that as the end 15 of the pawl 13 is longer than the end 14, this end 15 instead of entering one of the notches in r the slide 2 will rest upon the top of one of the teeth. Then in its first forward movement instead of advancing, the slide will remain stationary, and in the next forward step the slide will be advanced only the distance of half a tooth or half a step, so that the sheet to be punched will advance only half a step and a hole will be punched between the last and next to the last holes punched in the first operation. The continued movement of the machine will advance the work-holder to the right until the stop 20 engages with the tripping-finger 18 which will reverse the movement of the pawl and at the same time drop the work one notch. This movement of the pawl takes place during half of the rocking movement of the pawl-carrier and so that the pawl is really advanced only half a step after which it is engaged with the slide and consequently the slide is moved to the left only half a step, or in other words, brought back to the position it occupied during the first operation, and the work-holder will therefore have advanced only half a step and the hole punched will be staggered from the row of holes below it. If at any time it is desired to trip the work between the back and forth movement of the slide it may be done by moving the lever 28 by a hand-lever 33.

In order that the operation of feeding shall stop when the work-holder has completed its downward movement, a shield 34 is mounted at the upper end of an arm 35 secured to the fixed portion ofthe machine and is adapted to enter between the pawl 13 and the teeth of the slide 2 and so as to prevent the ends of the pawl 13 from entering the teeth of the slide and therefore arrest the movement of the rack. This can also be accomplished at any time by moving the locking-lever 17 It will be seen that by adjusting the several stops the length of movement of the slide 2 may be adjusted according to the width of the'strip to be punched.

I claim 1- 1. An automatic feeding device forpunching machines, comprising alongitudinally movable work-carry1ng slide, said slide formed with teeth, a pawl-carrier, a pawl carried thereby one end .of the pawl longer than the other, and automatic means for turning the pawl from one position to another, and automatic means for swinging the pawl to reverse the movement of the workcarrying slide. V

2. An automatic feeding device for punching machines, comprising a horizontally movable work-holding slide, teeth on said slide, a pawl-carrier, a double-ended pawl 011 said carrier and adapted at opposite ends to engage with the teethon the slide, means for moving the'pawl-carrier and with it the pawl, and means carried by the slide for automatically tripping the said pawl and reversing the movement of the work-carrying slide. I 3. An automatic feeding device for punching machines, comprising a longitudinally movable work-holding slide, teeth on said slide, a double pawl coacting with said teeth, and automatic means for moving said pawl, a vertically arranged rack connected with said slide, a double ended pawl adapted to engage with the teeth on said vertical rack, and means for automatically tripping the pawls at the end of each stroke, whereby the position of the slide-operating pawl will be reversed and the slide dropped vertically.

hAn automatic feeding device for punching machines comprising a longitudinally movable work-holding slide, provided with teeth, a pawl-carrier, a double-ended pawl on said carrier and adapted to engage with said teeth, means for rocking said pawl-carrier, a vertically arranged rack connected with said slide, a double-ended pawl adapted eachback and forth movement, and the opcrating pawl reversed whereby the move:- ment of the slide is reversed.

5. An automatic feeding device for pun'ching machines, comprising a longitudinally movable work-Carrying slide, said slide In testimony whereof, I have signed this formed with teeth, a pawl-earner, a pawl specification in the presence of two subscribcarried thereby one end of the pawl longer ing witnesses.

than the other, means for turning the pawl GEORGE C. LEES. 5 from one position to another, and means for Witnesses:

swinging the pawl, and a shield adapted to FREDERIO O. EARLE,

enter between the pawl and slide. M. P. NICHOLS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0." 

